Changing Name to Witness

It's pronounced FRAHNK-en-steen!

 

You sure must get discouraged easily if a little humor gets you down. BUt to answer your ?, no. It is a silly idea to change your name.

 

What if he makes a flying monkey live on my roof? What's your point?

Typically, people "hear" God telling them what they want him to say. Like those 19 guys on 9/11, who thought God wanted them to fly planes full of people into buildings full of people.

Of course if God wants to give you another name he can, but I'd have to be pretty sure that it was really God.

Oh, and the new name better not be "Suzie".

 

Where have I made fun of you? You asked a question... and I gave you a little humor and a serious answer. My, my, my, aren't we hypersensitive today? You have also accused me of making fun of "spiritual things", whatever you mean by that? What "spiritual things" are you referring to?

 

I don't think it would be of any benefit to change your name to witness. I think it might do more harm than good.

 

A new name does have possibilities. But Saul did change his name to a conventional name.

 

I went back and read the OP. I had read it originally that the poster wanted to change the name to "Witness." Why did I see it that way? I don't know.

 

Many children are given biblical names, it is rather common witness to their Christian heritage and the Bible (of course not all with names from the Bible are a witness to such but many children are named directly after biblical people). My thoughts are that your name is what people call you, not what people think about you.

But hey, changing your LIFE so you can witness...now that's an idea.

 

I wonder what tinytim means!!! :laugh: :wavey:

 

Aside from Abram to Abraham; Sarai to Sarah; and Jacob to Israel, name any others that happened to??

(Well, we are all, as believers, going to get a new name in the future, but I was referring to where it has already happened.)

I don't recall any others, off the top of my head. Do you?

Ed

 

Sorry, boys and girls. Scripture never says either that 'Saul' became 'Paul', or changed his name, or that the name of 'Paul' had been changed, before, nor does it say that 'henceforth he is to be known as 'Paul''.

What it does say about this is only this:

That is the sum and substance of what is said about his two names. He had both, apparently, with Saul (Gr. "σαυλος" or 'Saulos') being related to his Hebrew lineage, and Paul (Gr. "παυλος" or 'Paulos') being related to his being a Roman citizen. Apparently the Holy Spirit chose to utilize the "Greek and Roman flavor" as Paul was the Apostle to the Gentiles. Anything further, than the verse is pure speculation, and even I have engaged in a wee bit, here, although it does seem to fit, and seems plausable, as well. To me, at least.

BTW, SALTCITYBAPTIST, you grasped at your flag, 'er I mean straw! (Inside joke! Pete might get it, as well, if he's not too young. You know, push buttons, etc.) :wavey: :laugh:

Ed

 

OK Ed. My whole point - which I was trying to make again -- hence the use of the word conventional was that I mistakenly thought that the OP wanted to change his name to the name WITNESS which is unconventional.

I think my confusion had to do with the capitalization of the word witness in the subject line -- or it could have been my befuddled brain.

I also have experience with a name change. I've always been called Bitsy, but that was not the original name on my BC, even though I've never been called anything else. When I had my name legally changed to Bitsy, it did cause some issues legally. Some of those still crop up from time to time.

 

How about the name of the late Chinese preacher, Witness Lee? Any clue as to whether that is anywhere near an accurate English rendering of his given name of "(李常受, pinyin Lǐ Chángshòu)"?? I honestly have absolutely no clue, as to this, but that is what I have always heard him called. I wonder??

Hmmm!

Ed

 

From what I understand, God did not change Saul's name to Paul. If you read in Acts, Saul was his name to the Jews, even after his conversion, and Paul was his name to the Gentiles. Both names mean the same.

 

Nope, his given in Chinese does not mean "Witness." I'm not sure exactly what it would mean in Chinese (maybe Su Wei can help), but in Japanese it would mean something like "already given."

Many Chinese Christians still choose a Western or Christian name for their children. On our trip to Hong Kong I was privileged to be asked by a young Chinese mother to help her name her little boy. I don't remember the name we chose, but I felt it to be a great honor to be asked.

Occasionally a Japanese Christian will do the same, but it is rare nowadays.